Practicing A Musician’s Return to Music

Dear Readers,

For this blog, I’m going to depart a little bit from writing about awareness and the body to recommend a book that I just finished reading. Practicing A Musician’s Return to Music, Glenn Kurtz.

Kurtz studied guitar from an early age and went on to study at the New England Conservatory with aspirations of becoming a concert artist. He didn’t achieve his goal, quit playing and became, among other things a professor of comparative literature. After taking up the guitar again 10 years later, he put his fine writing skills to use by describing his plight as an aspiring musician, how it is to play now, and also includes some history of the guitar.

I was very moved by his description of being in music school and felt that he was able to accurately capture and describe an experience that I too went through. His ability to describe certain “atmospheres” or “moods” in the practice rooms and amongst fellow students brought me back to my own time studying at the University and the Conservatory.

Most importantly however, he ruminates on what it really means to make music and how the music is a result of the relationship between the performer, his/her instrument, and the listener. And he does mention something interesting about his posture while playing. He said that he was holding his right arm and elbow tense and posed the question: what does that say about his relationship with the listener?

I will write more about this theme in the next blog because posture always expresses something about the person. But for now I’ll leave you with the question: What does your posture express, or say about you, while playing/singing and when away from your instrument?

To go to the publisher’s site for a synopsis and reviews, click here

Thanks for reading, John Tarr

Be sure to check out the DMS podcasts, Feldenkrais® mini lessons for musicians and speakers.

from iTunes

or directly

If you have any specific questions or comments on The Feldenkrais Method® breathing and posture, send me an e-mail and I’ll try to respond in a future blog. Until then, breathe, sit, and stand well!